New York, July 25, 2016–Turkish authorities should cease using a failed coup attempt as a pretext for purging critical journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. In the latest in a series of moves against the media, police have issued arrest warrants for at least 42 journalists, Turkey’s official Anatolia news agency (AA) reported today.
“Journalists should not pay the price for military officers’ unlawful attempt to overthrow the government,” CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. “We call on Turkish authorities to stop imprisoning journalists for their views.”
Police have already detained at least five of the 42 journalists on the list, the Associated Press reported today, citing AA. At least six other journalists not on the list were detained in Turkey over the weekend, according to press reports.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on July 20 declared a state of emergency in order to catch all those responsible for a failed July 15 attempted military coup that left at least 200 people dead. Authorities have made thousands of arrests since, according to press reports.